Embodiments of the present invention relate to a device and a method for activating a horn of a motor vehicle by a remote transmitter independent of a motor vehicle user, to a motor vehicle and an alarm system or warning system having a wake-up effect based on motor vehicle honks.
As a consequence of a comprehensive disassembly and reassembly of sirens after 1992, for example in Germany an extensive warning system with a wake-up effect to be used for warning the civilian population no longer exists. Of the originally existing 87,000 sirens (ES) in 1992, only approx. 15,000 of 39,000 remaining sirens were still operable for alarming the population in 2000. A technical modification of existing sirens into civilian protection signals and an additional new assembly of a siren system is discarded in a study commissioned by the BBK (Bundesamt für Bevölkerungsschutz and Katastrophenhilfe; Federal Agency for the Protection of the Population and Emergency Aid) of the market-leading siren manufacturer Hörmann GmbH, Kirchseeon, due to the projected costs of approx. 250 million C=. (“Technologische Möglichkeiten einer möglichst frühzeitigen Warnung der Bevölkerung”, BMI, Reihe Zivilschutzforschung, Vol. 45, 2001).
The federal states and the federal agency BBK responsible for civil defense (e.g. in Germany) think such a warning system with a wake-up effect is needed, however.
A comprehensive solution for providing a warning system with a wake-up effect does not currently exist (in Germany). The current warning technology is an insufficient remaining stock of installed sirens. Different approaches have been examined since the end of the nineties, like, for example, alarming the population by:
1. SMS
2. telephone (landline or mobile)
3. radio-controlled alarm clocks and watches
4. smoke detectors
5. doorbells
6. rebuilding of a siren network
These proposals show more or less severe disadvantages and/or may not be implementable. The effectivity of some warning technologies is insufficient or doubtful (1.-5.) or the costs are too high for the state (6.).
Alarming by mass SMS was already rejected in 2003 as mobile radio technology is not suitable for such capacities. Tests had indicated that it took up to 24 hours to warn 50,000 residents of a city by SMS.
The highest technical supply rate without reassembly of a siren network is achieved via the telephone, which may also have a wake-up effect. However, there are increasingly less connections to the landline network in favor of mobile telephony, wherein this technology is not construed for such capacities. Landline telephony basically has the needed capacity for handling several thousands of conversations simultaneously. However, in this respect the installation of alarm computers in the telephone switchboards is needed. The costs for this are estimated to be approx. 200 million Euros.
More than 230 million Euros were already calculated years ago for the reassembly of the disassembled siren network.
The radio-controlled clock transmitter DCF77 is also capable to transmit warnings since 2006. The connections to the satellite-aided warning system SatWaS are available. However, large parts of the population have no radio-controlled clocks or alarm clocks.
Also a plurality of the TV and radio stations are connected to SatWaS (also in connection with RDS and DAB) and some interne providers who can correspondingly distribute current warnings. However, these media only reach active users and have no wake-up effect.
Further examples and a detailed explanation with respect to the underlying technical problems and the above-mentioned hitherto thought-out and discarded concepts may, for example, be found under http://www.bbk.bund.de/cln 027/nn 399436/DE/02 Themen/11 Zivilschutztechnik/04 Warnsyst/02 Entwick./Entwick1 node.html nnn=true, in the study “Problemstudie: Risiken für Deutschland, Teil1, Hrsg. BBK, AKNZ, 2005” to be found under http://www.bbk.fund.de/nn402296/SharedDocs/Publikationen/Wissenschaftsforum/Risikenfuer-D Teil1, templateld=raw.property=publicationFile.pdf/Risikenfuer-D Teil 1.pdf, in the study “Technische Möglichkeiten einer möglichst frühzeitigen Warnung der Bevölkerung Kurzfassung, BMI, Zivilschutzforschung, Neue Folge Band 45, 2001” to be found under http://www.bbk.bund.de/cln007/nn400298/SharedDocs/Publikationen/Publikationen 20 Forschung/Band2045, templateld=raw.property=publicationFile.pdf/Band %2045.pdf, in the study “Neue Strategie zum Schutz der Bevölkerung in Deutschland” im Kapitel “Ressourcen, Fähigkeiten and Defizite in der Gefahrenvorsorge und—abwehr, MI, Zentralstelle für Zivilschutz, Schriftenreihe WissenschaftForum, Band 4, 2002” to be found under http://www.bbk.bund.de/cln027/nn398732/SharedDocs/Publikationen/Wissenschaftsforum/B and-4 Neue Strategie.templateld=raw.property=publicationFile.pdf/Band-4 Neue Strategie.pdf, under “ZEIT v. 01.11.2007: “Warnsysteme: Aufwachen!”, http://www.zeit.de/2007/45/T-Warnsysteme.”, under “STERN v. 13.11.2007: “Katastrophenschutz: Das unerwünschte Schweigen der Sirenen”, http://www.stern.de/computer-technik/technik/:Katastrophenschutz-Das-Schweigen-Sirenen/602513.html”, under “HEISE v. 12.05.2008: “Die Rückkehr der Sirenen”, http://www.heise.de/newsticker/Die-Rueckkehr-der-Sirenen-/meldung/107742” and under “BERLINER ZEITUNG v. 18.01.2005: Sirene im Wohnzimmer”, http://www.berlinonline.de/berliner-zeitung/archiv/bin/dump.fcgi/2005/0118/wissenschaft/0017/index.html”.